A Statement by the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Bilateral Consultation on Persecution of the Greek Orthodox Community in Turkey

January 25, 1978
New York City

Introduction

Since 1965 in the United States, we the “Orthodox
and Roman Catholic Bilateral Consultation,” and
official group of churchmen, university and seminary professors,
have been investigating matters of mutual concern between
Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. The participants
of this Consultation have been officially designated by
the representative ecclesiastical authorities.

At our most recent consultation which took place in
New York City, January 24-25, 1978, this statement of
concern was drafted, in the first place, by the Roman
Catholic participants. They propose to submit to the National
Conference of Catholic Bishops of the United States, with
the request that the Conference consider it as a matter
of grave significance and take appropriate action. The
Orthodox participants in the Consultation unanimously
concur in the positions taken below. The statement is
issued therefore as a formal statement of the Orthodox
and Roman Catholic Bilateral Consultation.

A Statement of Concern:

In recent months the Turkish government has taken a
serious of injurious actions against the Greek Orthodox
community in Turkey. This Consultation is deeply concerned
about this grave situation that violates even the most
basic human rights. The history of restrictive measures
and outright persecutions by the Turkish officials against
the Greek Orthodox minority community, reflected in recent
years by the closing of the historic Theological School
of Halki, is already well known. However, in more recent
times, further discriminatory measures have been imposed
by Turkish authorities which limit the leaders of the
Greek Orthodox community in the exercise of their legitimate
religious rights. For example, millions of liras in taxes
have been imposed by Turkish authorities upon the schools
and churches of the Greek Orthodox community in Istanbul.
At the same time, the Turkish government has refused to
issue passports and permits for certain hierarchs and
many Turkish citizens of Greek descent to travel abroad.
By such actions Turkish officials have seriously interfered
with the exercise of the worldwide religious responsibilities
of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

These violations of human rights and religious freedom
are in themselves reasons for protest. In addition, we,
the members of this Consultation wish to underline the
historic significance of the Orthodox See of Constantinople
in its present geographical situation for witnessing to
the continuity of the Christian Church. The oppression
of the Greek Orthodox in Turkey and the threat to the
very existence there of the Ecumenical Patriarchate are
all the more serious in this period when the cause of
religious unity and world peace has been fostered by the
growing relationships between the Ecumenical Patriarch
and all the Orthodox Churches with the late Pope John
XXIII, His Holiness Pope Paul VI and with Christians everywhere.
We express our shock and outrage at these actions and
we dedicate ourselves in fraternal concern to continued
protests against these measures.